


Friendship is magic

by orphan_account



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: (of sorts??), Everyone Is Gay, It's hard to explain, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Roadtrip, also this is ooc, basically an excuse to make my ships live alongside one another, just thought i should add, rated teen for swearing and talks of sex (and other stuff), seokmin jisoo and channie r bffs, terrible attempt at comedy i apologise, well this is a mess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-18
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2018-12-31 09:27:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12129486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: "Friendship is magic?! Friendship is the furthest thing from magic I've ever seen in my life! Not once have I had all of my survival necessities burnt in a fire because some petty, angsty, hormonal teenager was mad at me for getting crumbs on the bottom of a tent!"





	1. 'Plastic fork dividers are necessary for eating.'

“Okay, listen,” Jihoon pulls Seungcheol across the cafe to an unoccupied table. His dark eyes shine with irritation, and his free hand is curled into a tight fist by his side. “We can’t go on this road trip.”

“Why not?” Seungcheol tilts his head to the side innocently, trying not to look past Jihoon to where Jeonghan and Jisoo are watching with interest as the two converse. It’s only been a minute since Seungcheol suggested a road trip, and Jeonghan and Jisoo were all for it, though Jihoon looked considerably put out. 

“Because,” Jihoon hisses, lips curling into a warning scowl. Just by questioning him, Seungcheol is teetering on the edge of his twenty-year-old friend having a tantrum like a baby over doing something he didn’t want to. “If you’ve forgotten,” His eyes narrow. “Everyone’s relationships apart from yours is on the rocks, and I don’t want a whopping five break-ups while Chan watches with Jeonghan’s hands over his ears.”

He’s got a point, in all fairness. Since finals week ended, there’s been some tension hanging in the air, most likely due to the fact that no one had much spare time, and all but Seungcheol and Jeonghan (They’re graduated, lucky idiots. Jisoo is graduated too, but Seokmin’s got another year so he was left out too) felt neglected by their partners. There’s so much awkwardness and sexual frustration surrounding the group of thirteen, that you can almost see it. Jeonghan described it as a dark grey, morbid fog following everyone around. 

“That’s why this road trip is good,” Seungcheol reasons, nudging Jihoon’s hand away as the smaller leans up to check that his pupils are normal and Jeonghan hasn’t persuaded him to smoke anything illegal. “Everyone can have sex in nature.”

“You’re fucking ridiculous,” Jihoon rubs his temples, but he sighs and shrugs in a silent way of backing down. As long as he returns home with his relationship intact and some kind of intense hangover, he’ll be fine. Besides, there are two cars and if any couples fall apart they can be separated at the nearest services. “But okay. If someone dies though, all the funeral funds go to you.”

Seungcheol mutters something about killing Jihoon first, but doesn’t speak loudly enough to start an argument, choosing instead to wander back to their table where the food has arrived. It’s not like he doesn’t want to pick a fight, Jihoon was snarky the whole finals period, but he and Jisoo share the role of group mediator and there’s no way he’s losing his title. Besides, if Jihoon had the energy to fight, he would have hurt someone a long time ago.

“So? Are we putting something on the group chat?” Jeonghan asks seriously, as Jihoon takes a seat next to Jisoo, frown still on his face. 

“Yeah,” Seungcheol says around a mouthful of waffles, nodding his head enthusiastically. “Start a new group chat and just ask people to respond with one word and no other messages, or it’ll get lost in the sea of memes we seem to be drowning in.”

Jeonghan nods his head and starts typing furiously on his phone. Considering the fact that Jeonghan’s parents own a string of phone selling shops across LA, and he could have any phone he wanted, he hangs desperately onto his dying iPhone 4 like it’s his baby. He’s dropped it more times than anyone could count, but somehow, it still works enough for Jeonghan to get by. 

“I’m still not happy about going,” Jihoon remarks, as his phone pings twice, indicating his addition to the group chat and receiving Jeonghan’s message.

“Just have loud sex to get back at us or something,” Seungcheol shrugs, shovelling more food into his mouth. Jisoo shoots him a look of disgust, and Jihoon isn’t sure whether it’s because of how fast the oldest is eating or because of loudly he’s talking about sex in a place where food is served. 

“Does everything you say have the word sex in it?” Jeonghan asks, glancing up from where he’s picking the fat off of his bacon. He doesn’t like the texture so he just pulls it off. (“Disgusting,” Mingyu said, as they all ate burgers one evening. “You’re disgusting, asswipe.”)

Jihoon busies himself with rearranging his plate so that nothing is touching, while Jisoo offers to help Jeonghan by using his knife to cut off the fat. Seungcheol’s finished already, and Jisoo never starts until everyone is happy, just in case he has to trade meals, so the only sound at the table is everyone breathing and the rustling noise of Jihoon folding napkins into triangles. 

(“Why the holy fuck would you fold a square napkin into a triangle?”  
“Shut the hell up Seungkwan.”  
“No, I’m being serious.”  
“And so am I.”)

There’s a brief silence at the table before Seungcheol starts laughing, and Jihoon is certain that Jeonghan made him smoke something illegal, because there’s nothing funny going on and the chances of Seungcheol coming up with an idea that doesn’t include safety is already suspicious. Everyone looks up from their post-brunch activities to stare at Seungcheol, who’s still laughing like a mad person.

“What?” Jeonghan asks, lifting his breakfast burrito up to his mouth. 

“We probably look insane,” Seungcheol says, body still shaking from silent laughter. “Jihoon’s folding napkins into triangles and putting plastic fork dividers between each item of food, Jeonghan’s cutting up bacon, Jisoo is helping Jeonghan to cut the bacon, and I’m finished before any of you have even started.”

“Plastic fork dividers are necessary for eating,” Jihoon says with his mouth full of plain bread roll. “I don’t want any of my food touching. And I’m not having the napkins conversation again.”

Jisoo nods along, smiling. Everyone says Jisoo smiles too much, that he doesn’t let anyone on to how he really feels- if he really feels at all. Even when you’ve really hurt his feelings, he smiles and apologises like it’s his fault. At some point, Junhui got sick of it and told him not to smile when he wasn’t happy, and Jisoo smiled wider, if that was even possible. 

Jeonghan nods too, but he doesn’t smile. His expression looks more like he can’t decide whether to try talking with his mouth this full, or to swallow first. The latter option wins and he holds up one finger to make everyone stop so that he can finish chewing and talk. 

“The fat on bacon is gross unless it’s cooked enough that it’s crispy,” He lifts up one of the pieces of bacon, which is not cooked to how he likes it, and grimaces. “On the subject of Jihoon’s eating habits, he has everything plain. I wouldn’t be surprised if his sex life was like that too-“

“Shut the hell up Jeonghan or so help me God-“

“Even his shirts are plain! He only wears anything that isn’t just block colour when Soonyoung makes him! It’s boring!”

Jihoon’s face twists into a scowl, or, as helpfully named by Hansol, ‘The Last Thing Jeonghan Will See before He Dies’. It’s a well-known fact within the group that as close as Jeonghan and Jihoon are, the former likes to tease his friends and Jihoon hates being teased. How they haven’t both been put in prison for murder yet surprises everyone. In fact, Mingyu being the one with the criminal record is even more shocking.

Mingyu is clumsy, and sometimes, careless, as Hansol likes to put it. It’s not that he isn’t a safe driver, it’s just sometimes he underestimates the effect ten shots of tequila and various other alcoholic concoctions have on him. 

“I’m not going to sit there and watch Jeonghan peel fat off bacon for ten minutes,” Jisoo adds, taking a sip from his water. His gaze lingers a little too long on Jihoon’s drink, which is the diet Cola he ordered, but with some Vodka from his hip flask that he takes everywhere. If you found him in the middle of the desert with practically nothing, you could guarantee that his hip flask came along for the ride. 

“Want some?” Jihoon offers cheekily, pushing the drink in Jisoo’s direction, with no regard to his strict policy of no alcohol before ten pm. “It’s good. Numbs the pain of reality.”

“Don’t pull a Wonwoo on us,” Seungcheol warns, theatrically waggling his fingers in front of Jihoon’s face. 

“I won’t,” Jihoon says. There’s an honest undertone to his playful response, and Seungcheol knows that he’s sensible enough to not end up in the hospital like Wonwoo did.  
“Besides,” He rests his chin in his palm, pushing the eggs he refuses to eat around his plate. “Unlike him, I always seem to have someone babysitting me.”

“That’s because you’re a baby,” Jeonghan coos, poking Jihoon’s cheek with one finger. As much as Jihoon hates to admit it, he likes and enjoys being called cute, what he doesn’t like is being put on the spot, like when someone demands he does something adorable. “You’re my stand-in baby for when Chan isn’t around.”

“I’m honoured,” Jihoon places a hand on his heart, pushing his plate, which still has half his meal on it, into the middle of the table. “Thanks, mom.”

Jisoo frowns at the half-eaten meal but doesn’t say anything. Jihoon’s a grown man, he can take care of himself, although the urge to push his plate back and make him eat at least eat a tiny bit more is overwhelming. 

Jihoon makes eye contact with Jisoo in silent thanks for not saying anything. 

‘You’re welcome.  
(I wish I could help you.)’

Brunch ends without any injury, and the four head back to Jeonghan and Seungcheol’s apartment to finish their Mario Kart battle and try the weird chocolate flavoured crisps that Mingyu’s been raving about for weeks. Something about the future being changed and replacing chocolate bars? None of them are sure, but the last time Mingyu got this excited it was because he got accepted into an elite culinary course. 

When Jeonghan swings open the door, though, there are seven other people sprawled on the three couches, and one of them hasn’t got a shirt on. Jihoon knows it Soonyoung because he’s the only person who takes his shirt off not because he’s hot, but because he just gets bored otherwise. It’s something everyone’s gotten used to by now, though Seungcheol drew the line at removing his shirt in a restaurant. 

“Nice to see you’re making good use of the emergency spare key,” Jeonghan says sarcastically, as he shoves Mingyu over to sit in the furthest corner of the couch. It’s cramped, because although there’s enough space to sit all thirteen of them comfortably on all the seats, Mingyu and Minghao both have a habit of sprawling, and take up whole couches singlehandedly because of their long legs. 

“Mm,” Junhui chews on his sleeve before reaching forward for the energy drink on the coffee table. “You’re our parents, aren’t you happy to see your kids back home?”  
“If I recall,” Jihoon perched himself on top of Soonyoung’s chest, the older grunting with the added weight. “Didn’t we say that Jisoo was our foster mom because Jeonghan’s an incompetent parent who drinks too much alcohol and tells us not to eat our vegetables?”

Minghao nodded from his place on the other couch, Seokmin squeezed in the space between the younger’s legs and the armrest, trying his best to win against Hansol on Mario Kart. 

“Oh yeah,” Jisoo smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “What about weekend visits, though?”

Foster parents and children in care had always been a touchy subject for Jisoo. When he was five, Jisoo’s parents got a divorce and he and his mother moved back to LA to get away from South Korea. (“We needed a break,” Jisoo explains patiently, voice gentle and quiet. “We wanted to escape our demons.”). One crazy neighbour reported Jisoo’s mother for child abuse, and he was thrust into the harsh world of being a child without a care-dependent. His mother wasn’t allowed weekend visits. He always sat by the window waiting for her to come back.

“He’d be banned,” Hansol cheered, beating Seokmin by five seconds. Luigi taunts Seokmin's loss from the grainy TV screen. “He tried to get Chan to give a stranger a blowjob once, remember?”

Jeonghan laughed. “That was my best attack yet, oh my lord,” He wiped a tear from his eye. “His face! His face, oh my god! And he almost did it too!”

“He was fifteen!” Seungkwan adds, eyes twinkling. “And his real mother came to pick him up!”

A beat passes and no one says anything, before Seungcheol pokes his head around the kitchen door and asks Junhui to come help him with something. Normally he’d ask Mingyu, but he’s in some kind of half-asleep state and the last time someone woke him up like that he had a headache for the rest of the day, complaining about it every chance he got.  
“Hey,” Jeonghan leans forward in his seat and everyone turns to look at him. There’s a mischievous look on his normally expressionless face due to being tired from work, and that means trouble. “You all got the group chat, right?” 

Everyone nods and Jeonghan's smile stretches so wide he looks like the Cheshire cat. Sensing trouble, Jisoo excuses himself to the bathroom. That way he isn’t an eye-witness for any illegal activities his friends end up doing. 

“While we’re camping,” Jeonghan’s made it his priority that once they arrive they go to this specific campground. Seungcheol, being group organizer and way too soft for his own good, agreed to it as long as everyone got their own tents. “There’s this creepy house by the campground lake. We should go, have a competition which group can last the longest.”

“I mean,” Soonyoung sighs through his nose, looking a little unsure of it. He’ll go if everyone else does, but that doesn’t mean he’s not going to be a little put out by the idea of exploring a possibly ghost infested place miles from his own home. “What if someone dies?”

“The worst we’re going to find is a couple of discarded joints by the entrance,” Seokmin points out, helpfully, it seems, as Soonyoung visibly relaxes. He turns back to Jeonghan. “I’m all for it.”

“I’m not going in,” Minghao’s voice is quiet. Normally he loves things like this, but there’s always going to be an exception. “I’ll stay back with anyone who doesn’t want to go.”

“It’ll just be you and Jisoo,” Seungkwan warns, but Minghao just shrugs and picks at the hem of his sweater mindlessly. 

Everyone goes silent. 

‘I wish I could help you.  
(Let me in.)’


	2. 'That's nasty, Soonyoung,'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so 1/3 of this chapter talks about junhao and mingyu x junhui. you can skip if you'd like to, but it just gives a little insight to the characters backstories with one another.

“Is everyone here?” Seungcheol does a brief headcount as he shoves Chan’s duffel bag into the trunk. The only people who haven’t arrived yet are Mingyu and Minghao, but they’re never late so Jeonghan is fretting.

“Oh! Minghao just texted,” Seungkwan looks up from his phone. “They’re on their way, some kind of medical emergency, I think?”

“Lies,” Soonyoung detaches his lips from Jihoon’s neck. “Bet you Mingyu went too rough.”

“That’s nasty, Soonyoung,” Wonwoo grimaces, frowning as the younger shrugs innocently. Soonyoung takes Wonwoo’s glare as a reason to reattach himself to Jihoon, like a Labrador who still thinks he’s small enough to sit in people’s laps.

Sure enough, Mingyu’s car pulls up to the curb, and Hansol cheers. Mingyu is the second assigned driver because Soonyoung still has his license banned and getting pulled over by the police is last on the list of holiday plans. Besides, Jisoo is swapping with Seungcheol halfway and Hansol’s allowed to drive as long as a qualified driver is there with him.

“You’re late,” Jeonghan says bluntly, as Mingyu gets out of the driver’s side door to start putting luggage in the back. “You’re twenty minutes late.”

“Anxious,” Mingyu mouths in response, gesturing towards the front passenger seat before helping Jihoon to get his suitcase into the back. Hansol puts his suitcase in by himself, and everyone else put their luggage into Seungcheol’s car because his trunk is bigger, but there’s still going to be five passengers in Mingyu’s including him and Minghao.

Seungcheol does another headcount before nodding in approval and herding his passengers into his car. As he’s oldest he got the maps, so Mingyu will just have to remember to stay behind him and not overtake, as he drives like he’s in Fast and Furious.

 

 

“Oh God, I’m sorry,” The car is cold and silent, apart from the light drizzle tapping insistently on the roof and windows. The occupants of the back seats are passed out, and only he and Junhui are awake.

“What am I going to do?” Junhui slams his head against the front passenger window. Jeonghan sacrificed his seat to the younger man so that he could share Wonwoo’s earphones, and from how quickly he fell asleep, it was a good decision.

“I don’t know, I really don’t.”

“I mean,” Junhui sighs with his mouth open. “We dated for a little, but we split. ‘Take a small break’ he said, ‘We’ll get back together’ he said. But he didn’t want to. And now he’s off frolicking with my ex and I’m trying to figure out what’s so great about Kim fucking Mingyu.”

Seungcheol takes a sympathetic glance at his friend, who is looking a little worse for wear. Junhui just can’t seem to let Minghao go, even though he pretends that he’s happy for him. Tension runs high between Mingyu and Junhui now, even though it hurts the older to be distant from someone he genuinely cares about. The things people go through when they date around their friend group, honestly.

“And then I realise,” Junhui sounds beyond bitter at life. “He’s so great because I’m in love with him too!”

For a little while, just before the eldest three graduated, Junhui and Mingyu had a fling that turned out to last three months and a couple of weeks of friends with benefits post break-up. However, regardless of the unsaid I love yous and the sexual tension, they both made amends and became even closer. Until Mingyu moved onto Minghao and Junhui was kind of stuck in-between.

It’s tough, for everyone really, because when any kind of friendship between them gets strained, the awkward pretend hugs and small talk don’t go unnoticed, and the eldest always get caught up in it all.

“You know,” Seungcheol pats Junhui’s shoulder. “I know this sounds bad, but this trip will be a massive test on everyone’s relationships. You may end up getting what you wish for, that is, if karma doesn’t come to stick its giant cock up your ass.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Junhui looks distraught. “I like Minghao, heck- I think I love him, but at the same time, I wish I hadn’t broken up with Mingyu, because I love him too. And I want to try dating Wonwoo more officially, as well. I’m scared I’m going to act irrationally and ruin the trip.”

They sit in silence for a moment before Junhui’s phone pings and he leans forward to read the message. The second he reads the text, his face falls, and he just discards his phone on the ground without any regard to taking care of it.

The radio isn’t on in case anyone wakes up and decides to sing along, so the only noise is the sound of cars rushing past to their destinations, wherever they may be. It’s only twenty minutes into the trip, and Seungcheol’s got a sneaking suspicion that at least one person is going to get their heart broken.

“Who was it?” Seungcheol dares to ask, looking at the back passengers in the mirror.

“Do you really have to ask?” Something in Junhui’s voice sounds a little like heartbreak, and Seungcheol wants to make everything okay.

Junhui’s hurting – too much, too hard, for someone who is as strong as he is – but he rarely tells anyone how he feels about it. He’s so talented at putting everyone and their mother before himself at this point, that Seungcheol doubts he could admit his feelings to more than one person at once. In fact, he probably wouldn’t have told the older at all if he hadn’t of been drunk and alone on Valentine’s Day.

“Listen, Jun,” The rain is finally getting weaker after fifteen minutes of drizzle, and the car is getting brighter from the sun peeking out from between the clouds. “Maybe, you should put what you feel for Minghao and Mingyu to the side, and focus on Wonwoo. They’re caught up in each other, we both know this, and you and Wonwoo are closer than I think I’ve ever seen from people who aren’t officially together.”

“Right. Yeah, you’re right,” Junhui nods along, but Seungcheol thinks that he hasn’t taken any of his advice in. He’s built up so many walls and facades, that honestly, he’s surprised that he hasn’t completely isolated himself from the others yet.

“Just take care of yourself, don’t worry about anyone except yourself and Wonwoo.”

 

 

“Right,” Mingyu starts talking the second all the doors are shut and they’re on the road. “I have some rules, because this is my car and you’re paying if it gets damaged.”

Hansol mutters in acknowledgement and Mingyu continues.  

“One,” He makes eye contact with Soonyoung in the rear-view mirror. “No sexual exploits. I am done with people borrowing my car for sex and not cleaning up.”

“It was one time!” Soonyoung protests, crossing his arms over his chest. “And we _did_ clean up.”

“Two,” Mingyu grits his teeth. “The driver picks the music.”

“Ha!” Jihoon waves his earphones around like they’re a winning lottery ticket. There are too many loopholes in the rules, Mingyu realises.

“Three,” Minghao has his head against the window, watching the cars go past. Mingyu has to watch his driving today, especially after the younger’s episode of anxiety this morning, he’s particularly jumpy and skittish, and no one wants that. “No shouting. Quiet voices.”

Everyone stops listening at that point, so Mingyu decides rules will just have to be decided when they’re broken. He’s taken this approach in the past, and the worst that’s happened is that Junhui fractured his wrist, but it was his fault for getting it stuck in the window.

The roads are empty this time of the day, and there’s minimal activity in the car, so Mingyu turns the radio on and leans further back in his seat. He likes driving, the gentle rumble of the road beneath the rubber tyres, the soft hum of cars shooting past, the calming sensation of having complete control of something three times bigger than you.

“-Look at Hansol!”

“He looks dead. Is he? Did we kill him?”

“No, I don’t think so. He’d put up a fight.”

Mingyu sighs. _Normally_ he loves driving, anyway. When Jihoon and Soonyoung are in the backseats, though, he’s constantly on edge. Understandably too, as they’re the people that got drunk in fifteen minutes and dared Junhui to put his wrist in the window. Thinking about it, Mingyu could technically report them for egging on self-harm, but in hindsight, he’d probably get fined for wasting police time.

“Guys, sit quietly and watch porn or something,” Mingyu says, eyes still trained on the back of Seungcheol’s car. If he has a crash because of them, he can guarantee that they’ll be the only survivors, as if the universe hasn’t spat in his face already.

“But you said no sexual exploits,” Soonyoung replies innocently, batting his eyelashes as Jihoon tries to sneak his hip flask back into his coat pocket.

“Let’s play a game,” Minghao sounds irritated. “Let’s see if you two can make me snap. I’ll be the referee.”

There’s a dangerous edge to his voice as he speaks, and Jihoon and Soonyoung share a glance before sinking back into their car seats. The earphones make an appearance and Mingyu nods in content when he takes a backwards glance and he can see Soonyoung half on-top of Jihoon, sound asleep.

Thank God for their toddler-like attention spans, honestly.

**Author's Note:**

> wow i hate myself the more i look at this mess


End file.
